Abstract

Although there is a vast research base on the literacy practices of adolescents and the issues surrounding the integration of technology despite current widespread access to tools and the Internet (Cuban, 2003), very little has been completed on the attempts of teacher educators to integrate technology within a specific content area to prepare future classroom teachers (Boling, 2010; Bruce & Hogan, 1998; Goodson & Mangan, 1995; Koehler, Mishra, Yahya, & Yadav, 2004; Pang & Kamil, 2004). Based on the technological pedagogical content knowledge framework, the current study explores how technology can be used to improve teaching within the content area of English/language arts by examining the artifacts and reflections of 21 pre- and in-service secondary English teachers at a large university in the Southwestern United States. It explores how the digital medium VoiceThread could support their efforts to teach poetry. Results indicate that these future teachers found VoiceThread to be an effective tool to prepare, implement, and teach poetry to secondary students. (Contains 2 tables and 3 figures.)